Poolish Baguettes
Bernard Ganachaud, in the early 1960s, made the poolish baguette the first legitimate alternative to the 60-2-2 baguette of the Parisian masses. When he retired thirty years later, his la flûte Gana was a licensed commodity, and bakers who paid for the right to make it were allowed to charge an extra franc above the government-controlled price. In the Coupe du Monde bread competition, the poolish baguette is now the standard that all countries must replicate. In my visits to the boulangeries of Paris, the poolish baguette made at the original Ganachaud Boulangerie was the second best baguette I ever had (the first being the pain à l’ancienne of Philippe Gosselin). Ganachaud has a special medium-extraction flour (with his name prominently displayed on the bags, naturally) from which he makes his baguettes, and there isn’t any flour quite like it in America. It is slightly higher in ash content and bran than regular bread flour, more like clear flour (whole-wheat flour that has been sifted only once instead of the usual twice to remove the bran and germ). The closest I’ve come to replicating that flour is described below and it makes a wonderful baguette, perhaps as good as can be done outside of the magical environment of Paris and without true Ganachaud-endorsed flour. Some people prefer it to the Gosselin baguette. See what you think.
Recipe information
Yield
makes 3 small baguettes
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Remove the poolish from the refrigerator 1 hour before making the dough to take off the chill. Pass the whole-wheat flour through a sifter or a strainer, sifting out the bran. Sift as much of the flour through the strainer as will go and set aside the bran that remains in the strainer for another application—perhaps Multigrain Bread Extraordinaire (page 187) or Pain de Campagne (page 196).
Step 2
Stir together the flours, salt, and yeast in a 4-quart mixing bowl (or in the bowl of an electric mixer). Add the poolish pieces and 1 1/8 cups of the water and stir with a large spoon (or mix on low speed with the paddle attachment) until the ingredients form a ball. Add more water or flour as needed to create a dough that is soft but not sticky.
Step 3
Sprinkle bread flour on the counter, transfer the dough to the counter, and begin to knead (or mix on medium speed with the dough hook). Knead for about 10 minutes (or 6 minutes by machine), sprinkling in more bread flour if needed. The dough should be soft and pliable, tacky but not sticky. It should pass the windowpane test (page 58) and register 77° to 81°F. Lightly oil a large bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling it around to coat it with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap.
Step 4
Ferment at room temperature for approximately 2 hours, or until the dough nearly doubles in size. Remove the dough and knead it lightly for 1 minute. Return the dough to the bowl and cover it again.
Step 5
Ferment for an additional 2 hours at room temperature; the dough should double in size.
Step 6
Lightly sprinkle flour on the counter and gently transfer the dough to the counter. Divide it into 3 equal pieces with a pastry scraper or serrated knife, being careful to degas it as little as possible. Shape the pieces into baguettes, as shown on page 74, and prepare them for proofing by either the couche or parchment methods described on pages 38.
Step 7
Proof the baguettes at room temperature for 50 to 60 minutes, or until they grow to about 1 1/2 times their original size and are still slightly springy to the touch.
Step 8
Prepare your oven for hearth baking as described on pages 91–94, making sure to have an empty steam pan in place. Preheat the oven to 500°F. Score the baguettes as shown on page 90.
Step 9
Generously dust a peel or the back of a sheet pan with semolina flour or cornmeal and very gently transfer the dough pieces to the peel or pan. Transfer the baguettes to the baking stone (or bake directly on the sheet pan). Pour 1 cup hot water into the steam pan and close the door. After 30 seconds, spray the oven walls with water and close the door. Repeat twice more at 30-second intervals. After the final spray, lower the oven setting to 450°F and bake for 10 minutes. Check the bread at this point and rotate 180 degrees, if necessary, for even baking. Continue baking for 8 to 12 minutes, or until the loaves are a rich golden brown and register at least 205°F in the center. If they seem to be getting too dark before reaching this temperature, reduce the oven to 350°F (or turn it off) and bake for an additional 5 to 10 minutes.
Step 10
Remove the bread from the oven and cool on a rack for at least 40 minutes before slicing or serving.
BREAD PROFILE
Step 11
Lean, standard dough; indirect method; commercial yeast
DAYS TO MAKE: 2
Step 12
Day 1: 3 to 4 hours poolish
Step 13
Day 2: 1 hour to de-chill poolish; 12 to 15 minutes mixing; 4 hours fermentation, shaping, and proofing; 15 to 25 minutes baking
Commentary
Step 14
This formula calls for sifted whole-wheat flour, but many people don’t have sieves fine enough to filter out the bran (what we’re trying to do is approximate the grade of flour known as clear flour). If your whole-wheat flour goes through the sifter without leaving behind a substantial amount of bran, replace all but 2 tablespoons of the whole-wheat flour with an equal amount of regular bread flour. The 2 tablespoons of whole-wheat flour will provide about the right amount of fiber and ash.
Step 15
It’s always easiest to make the poolish the day before (or up to 3 days in advance), and then pull it out of the refrigerator an hour before you need it. However, you can also make it the same day as the final dough, as long as you make it about 4 hours in advance to give it plenty of time to bubble up and ferment.
Step 16
It never hurts to add some old dough, pâte fermentée, if you have any hanging around from previous projects, in addition to the poolish (no other adjustments are necessary since pâte fermentée is a complete formula unto itself). I’ve added up to 50 percent (in the recipe below that would equal about 8 ounces) and found that it reduces fermentation time by about 20 percent without any loss in flavor. In fact, some people like it even better than with poolish alone.
BAKER’S PERCENTAGE FORMULA
Step 17
Poolish Baguettes %
Step 18
Poolish: 41.2%
Step 19
Whole-wheat flour: 47.1%
Step 20
Bread flour: 52.9%
Step 21
Salt: 2.2%
Step 22
Instant yeast: .47%
Step 23
Water (approx.): 55.9%
Step 24
Total: 199.8%
